Thursday, April 28, 2011

Welcome back to Idol Be The Judge. Tonight we will learn the fate of one of these remaining 6. Our prediction was Jacob, Haley and Casey Bottom 3, with Jacob going home. I think Haley had a strong night last night, but since she has been in Bottom 3 before when she has had good weeks it's possible she will be there again. I think Scotty's fan base is immense, and James had a great night, the only person that could slide into the Bottom 3 is possibly Lauren, but I don't think she is in danger of going home. But I've been wrong before, and crazier things have happened this season *cough* Pia leaving too early *cough*.

Crystal Bowersox performs tonight. I was a Bowersox fan last year and much preferred her over Lee DeWyze. Neither of them has had tremendous success after the run of the show, but I still am a fan.
All of that, and I am sure a whole lot more will happen, so let's get to it:

Ryan's Announcement:

He warns the American Idol audience that a lot of fans will be disappointed with tonight's results. Hmm.

Brit Week:

The Idol contestants go to the British Consulate to celebrate Kate and Prince William's wedding. Wait they are getting married? I hadn't heard. Pretty much the contestants are like fish out of water. I don't really understand what they are doing there, they don't perform, it's not like they performed British music, so that's a little odd.

Top 6 Group Performance:

All the contestants perform a medley of Carole King songs together. They definitely sang it live, and some of them sounded pretty good and some did not. Nothing outstanding, I actually like the little mini group performances they have been doing the past couple of weeks, but since they did Duets last night it's not a surprise that they changed it up.

Performance # 1:

Crystal Bowersox performs her new song "Ridin With The Radio". Her style is definitely more country rock, kinda of bluesy with a lot of soul. She does a really nice job, I still think she should have won, but she didn't, and it's almost a year later so I'm pretty much over it. Pretty much.

Question and Answers With The Contestants:

Casey-If you could perform with an artist living or dead who it be and what would you sing? He says Oscar Peterson who is a very well known jazz artist.

Jacob-When and how did you discover the range in your voice? He says he was 6 or 7 at choir practice and sang the alto and soprano part with no problems.

Lauren-What's the hardest thing about being and Idol finalist? She says missing her family and friends, especially when tornadoes are going through this country near her house and being worried for them. (Our condolences also go out to anyone affected by the deadly tornadoes).

Scotty-Did you ever have a pre-Idol job? He says he worked at a grocery store and helped his mom at her tanning salon.

James-Did you play with a band before Idol? He says he has been with a number of bands and always is doing lots of different projects.

Haley-Who is your all time favorite past Idol contestant? She said she liked Adam Lambert and Siobhan Magnus, Kelly Clarkson, Lee DeWyze and Crystal Bowersox. (Ryan throws a jab in there about her not mentioning Taylor Hicks).

Results # 1:

Haley comes to center stage. (Not only do we get the results, but we get to see a recap of last night's performance with the judges comments and new comments from Jimmy Iovine).

Jimmy Iovine's Comments: Says that she does have one of the best voices in the competition but still doesn't know herself yet and if she goes home it will be because of that.

(Haley doesn't like Jimmy's comments at all and even curses in response to him. Ryan tells her to watch her mouth. I think I like her even more now!)

Haley is SAFE

Scotty comes to center stage.

Jimmy Iovine's Comments: Thinks he is a phenom, and feels he has a subtly that is magnificent but worries that subtlety's sometimes get lost in this competition and could prove to be a little troubling for him.

Ryan Does Not Tell Scotty His Results Yet

Lauren comes to center stage.

Jimmy Iovine's Comments: Wants her to hear the positives instead of the negatives. She has a poise when she is confident that challenges anyone and feels she is here for the long run.

Ryan Does Not Tell Lauren Her Results Yet

Casey comes to center stage.

Jimmy Iovine's Comments: Thinks he is a great musician but was disappointed that he growled because the family dog doesn't vote. Predicts that Casey is Safe.

Ryan Does Not Tell Casey His Results Yet

James comes to center stage.

Jimmy Iovine's Comments: Feels he is more believable singing a melody with a rock feel rather than metal. Thinks if James picks the right songs there is no doubt that he can win this thing.

James is SAFE

Jacob comes to center stage.

Jimmy Iovine's Comments: Thinks he went into the wrong dressing room and accidently slipped into the Dancing With The Stars wardrobe. Doesn't think he brought the whole package. Thinks Jacob could possibly go home and is on banana peel status.

Lauren, Scotty, Casey join Jacob back at center stage.

Lauren is SAFE

Performance # 2:

Bruno Mars performs "The Lazy Song". It was obviously taped, but it's still a cool song and is pretty relatable. I enjoy Bruno Mars, he has a really nice voice and most of his songs are pretty catchy, especially this one.

Not Necessarily Bottom 3/Who's Going Home

SAFE=Jacob

SAFE=Scotty

Going HOME=Casey. Can't be saved this time.

Final Thoughts:

*I think people just got tired of Casey's shtick along with the other contestants just doing a really nice job. The growling, the walking around angry, kissing J.Lo, getting saved by the judges. Casey's journey on American Idol was definitely a crazy and eventful one. He had a very specific nitcshe and it's tough to broaden your fan base when you have a very specific persona. He was able to go from the 11th position to the 6th. That's not a bad run. Not saying the Save shouldn't have been saved instead of on him and utilized on Pia, but it's not like he went home the week after he was initially voted off. He was able to reprieve himself for over a month and ya gotta give him credit for that.

*When you only have 6 contestants left and an hour results show it leads to them dragging the results out forever. Having the contestants stand up and sit down and then stand up and hopefully sit back down is a pain. I'm sure it's a pain to the contestants and it's a pain to watch.

*I liked hearing Jimmy's comments, I thought it brought a different dynamic to the long winded results show. Sometimes we only get a little snippet of Jimmy's thoughts right before we see the contestants join him for their mentor session. I think he was pretty much on the ball, except with Haley, who I do think is growing each week even if he doesn't see that.

*Jacob is still around, we don't know who the Bottom 2 or 3 was but I'm going out on a limb that he may have been pretty low on the totem pole. He better start being the Jacob that we saw in Holllywood or he'll be in trouble next week. With only 5 people left you could say almost anyone is at risk, but Jacob and Haley to a lesser extent have to continue to step up their game.

Please come back next week to I'dol Be The Judge. In years past at this point with only 5 people left they have had the contestants perform 2 songs. Come back here to see if that's the case. See you then.

Wednesday, April 27, 2011

Welcome back. We are down to the Final 6. This week's theme is Carole King. It's definitely a dramatic change from songs from the 21st century last week to Carole King songs this week, but that's how American Idol rolls. I think Jacob, Haley and Casey need to step it up this week given that Scotty, Lauren and James have yet to even be in the Bottom 3. The contestants not only had Jimmy Iovine as a mentor but Babyface as well. He is very well respected singer and producer in the music industry so the contestants should have a lot of help this week.

The contestants are not only singing as individuals but singing as duets. The show did this last year and it seemed to work out, we shall see if it is as successful this year, so let's get to it:

How Were The Contestants?:

Jacob(Oh No Not My Baby): It took Jacob a really long time to figure out how to sing this song with the mentors, he seemed to have a lot of difficulty figuring out the best way to showcase his voice. The song really didn't do much for me this week. I think he tried, he riffed, he was pretty much in key, but it didn't really get me going too much. Not sure I liked Much better than last week, but I don't know if it is enough to get him out of the Bottom 3 or going home. Grade=B-Steven: Thinks it was beautiful and glad he shook his tail feather.Jennifer: Didn't think it was perfect but glad he brought out a good performance, thinks he killed it vocally.Randy: Thinks there was few shaky spots, but thought it was energetic and glad that he really sung tonight. Do The Judges Agree With Me?: Not really. They seemed to really enjoy his vocal, I am glad they didn't go crazy nuts for it, but they still enjoyed it a lot more than me.

Lauren(Where You Lead): After being told by the judges to push herself this week, Babyface tells Lauren to hit the high notes like everyone knows she can. Miley Cyrus also shows up to surprise Lauren. Given that Jimmy Iovine pretty much said that Lauren sang Miley's song "The Climb" better than Miley did, it must've been a tad awkward for him, he tells Miley that some of her fans have been getting on him, and it's pretty deserved she feels. The song starts off a little slow for Lauren, but she picks it up once the song moves up in tempo. She definitely seems more confident and doesn't seem afraid of the stage, she even pulls a boy from the audience to sit on the stage with her. I know it's all staged and manufactured, but it's still nice for her to do something different. She sang really beautifully tonight. Grade=B+Jennifer: Is so proud of Lauren for pushing herself and getting through her barriers. Randy: Thinks she came out with a little bit of swagger, doesn't know if he loved the song choice, but loves that she came back with a vengeance and made it more than the song itself.
Steven: Thinks she shined when she pushed herself, wants her to keep doing what she is doing.Do The Judges Agree With Me?: They do. They saw that she really pushed herself and did a lot with the song.

Haley and Casey (I Feel The Earth Move): The first duet of the night. Their little taped package plays off the fact that there is a rumor that they are dating each other. They sound really nice together, they play off each other very nicely and interact onstage together in a very fun and playful way. Their voices also did a lot with the song. Grade=B+Steven: Thought it was really good and there wasn't anything about it he didn't like. Does Steven Agree With Me?: He does. Loved the way they moved on stage and loves the chemistry they have together.

Scotty(You Got A Friend): Jimmy's goal this week is to try to do a few things differently with Scotty's voice and performance this week. Loved the beginning of the song, how soft and tender it was. Scotty's voice was very controlled and on the money tonight. Could the performance be deemed a little boring? Sure. But he did a lot of good with the song and made some interesting choices with the song to make it different. I've heard this song sung in many ways, but this was different and pretty enjoyable. One of my favorite Scotty performances thus far. Grade=B+Randy: Thinks the beginning was flawless but when he hit the high notes he sometimes falls off the notes. Thinks Scotty is in it to win it. Steven: Liked that he went up for the high notes that he is sometimes afraid of. Doesn't think he sang any better. Jennifer: Thinks he is getting better at pushing himself to get to the higher notes, and loves how he told the story beautifully. Do The Judges Agree With Me?: Yup. He definitely sang really beautifully tonight and deserves the accolades he got, but still can push himself even further.

James(Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow): Singing a Carol King song is as opposite as James can get from last week's marching band led performance. Jimmy is very excited by James' rehearsals. Loved the acapella beginning of the song. It was very cool and original. James was able to keep the basic tone of the song but add his rock flair into it. There were a couple of pitchy spots once the band started in, but the performance as a whole was really cool and different. I give him a lot of credit Grade=A-Steven: Loved the beginning, didn't initially like it when he added the rock element, but it grew on him as it went along.Jennifer: Thought from the beginning it was magical, thinks he is the star of the night. Doesn't think he has blown one week, and has been consistent week in week out.Randy: Didn't think he was just a great rock singer, but a great singer. Thinks it was not only one of the best performances of the night, but over the past few months and thinks James could win the whole show. Then James and Randy hugged.Do The Judges Agree With Me?: Yep. It was definitely the performance of the night thus far. I don't know if he will win the whole thing like Randy believes, but I do think that he has been very consistent like J.Lo said.

Lauren and Scotty(Up On The Roof): They have a more brother/sister dynamic rather than the boyfriend/girlfriend dynamic that Casey and Haley had. Both of their vocals were pretty decent. The performance was a little boring, they didn't do too much with the song other than make it sound country. Grade=B
Jennifer: Thinks Lauren sang her brains off and thinks Scotty sounded good too.
Does Jennifer Agree With Me?: Kinda. She thinks it was really really good, I think it was good.

Casey(Hi De Ho): Jimmy feels that this is a very tough song to sing and takes a lot of personality to pull it off. One thing Casey does have is personality. I think I prefer Jazzy Casey, over Angry Rocker Casey like last week. He still had some angry moments, but he attained a better balance of Jazz mixed in with it. So it was a much calmer performance. Grade=BRandy: Loves that he keeps the show different. Is it excited every time he is out there.Steven: Thinks he really found his niche. Thinks it was beautiful. Jennifer: Thinks he is really in his element. Wants him to loosen up and bring out more with his body.Do The Judges Agree With Me?: Pretty much. They really enjoyed his performance and I kind of liked it. It didn't blow me away, but it was pretty good.

Haley(Beautiful): After a minor technical glitch before she began, Haley starts off with a lot of energy. She sings the slower spots very tenderly, and brings a lot of passion and energy to the faster parts. She had a ton of control over her voice tonight, and really told a story with her song.Steven: Thinks he saw God in her voice, she nailed it.Jennifer: Thinks it was beautiful and thinks she has one of the best voices in this competition.Randy: Didn't love the beginning but thinks the end was great. Do The Judges Agree With Me?: Yep. I think she nailed it and she could be a contender if she just keeps growing.

Jacob and James(I'm Into Something Good): Pairing up the very very different voices of James and Jacob is a bit unfair to both. But given that Casey and Haley and Scotty and Lauren match up perfectly, they have to deal with it. Both James and Jacob's voices sounded pretty decent together despite the very different voices that they have. Good effort. But the Casey and Haley duet was the best of the night. Grade=B-Steven: Doesn't think it was the most award winning performance. Does Steven Agree With Me?: Yep. It definitely wasn't so great, but wasn't all bad.

How Was The Show/Judges?:

*I love that a lot of these contestants took the original song and flipped it and made it into their own. This year there hasn't been a lot of originality, a lot of the contestants have just been singing the original version as it was originally performed and not doing anything with it. Finally tonight these contestants started to mix it up and show that not only could they sing, but they can be artists. They aren't all the way there yet, but it was a good first step.

*I think its a little unfair to Haley to not get the last spot of the night. She was the last individual performance and deserved the best spot of the night, the last spot, but it went to the duet of James and Jacob. The last performance leaves the best impression with the voting audience, and it's unfair that she didn't get it. Tell me if I'm wrong, but I don't think 1 performer has been voted off after being in the last spot of the night. So it's pretty important in my opinion. Also, the show was running a bit behind so the judges had to rush through some of Haley's comments. Haley has been in the Bottom 3 the most out of everyone and needs all the judges support she can get, if she wasn't going to be the last performance of the night then I wish she went somewhere in the middle when the judges had more time to give her nice compliments.

Bottom 3/Who's Going Home Predictions?:

Bottom 3= Jacob, Casey and Haley. Going Home= Jacob. He went first, he has been in Bottom 3 a good amount of times, and I don't think tonight really helped him out. He was easily the weakest performance of the night and was a little forgettable.

Come back here tomorrow night to see what happens next. My favorite from last Crystal Bowersox is performing, the results and probably even more craziness all happens tomorrow. See you then.

Thursday, April 21, 2011

Welcome back. Tonight another contestant is going to be leaving the show and we'll see which 6 remain. We had our first male contestant go home last week for the first time, and we will see if that streak continues of if Lauren or Haley join the other ladies who have long been gone.

Last night we picked, Jacob, Stefano, and Haley as the Bottom 3, with Jacob going home. I really don't know how the whole Casey kissing J.Lo on the cheek thing made him look. Some might have thought it was cute, others might not have liked it. Casey hasn't been in the Bottom 3 since he was almost voted off so it seems his fan base has grown since then. Scotty, Lauren and James have yet to see the Bottom 3. We'll see if any of that changes, so let's get to it:

Lauren, Haley, Stefano and Jacob Perform

I really dislike Soul Train's "Hey Soul Sister", but these 4 contestants are singing it anyways. Don't they know that I don't like the song? The way that they sang it seemed they didn't like it either. It didn't really showcase any of them very well. Very karaoke and generic.

James, Casey and Scotty Perform

These 3 are singing Coldplay's "Viva La Vida". A much better song selection, I actually wish a contestant had sung a Coldplay song last night. Again this was a rough performance and didn't do anything for any of these contestants. Plus their little choreography was silly.

Results # 1:

Casey and Jacob stand up right at the couch.

Casey is SAFE

Jacob is BOTTOM 3

Performance # 1:

David Cook is back. David Cook is probably one of my favorite American Idol winners. I might not have bought his Cd or followed up with his career a ton, but through the run of his Season he was my favorite hands down, and still is one of the most original contestants the show has ever seen, which contributes to why he is one of my favorite Idols of all time. He is singing his new song "Last Goodbye". The song was very in David's lane. He sounded really cool. It was good to see him again. As I said before, my favorite Results show performances are the ones that feature past American Idol contestants.

This Week in Being An Idol Contestant

*The contestants got to go to a Dodger game.

*They got to go Bowling.

*The contestants get pampered. Massages, makeup and facials. It seems most of the boys enjoyed this one.

Results # 2:

Lauren, James and Stefano join Ryan center stage.

Stefano is BOTTOM 3

Lauren is SAFE

James is SAFE

Results # 3:

Scotty and Haley join Ryan center stage.

Scotty is SAFE

Haley is BOTTOM 3

Results # 4

Haley rejoins Ryan right away center stage.

Haley is SAFE

This leaves Stefano and Jacob in Bottom 2.

Performance # 2:

Katy Perry performs her new hit single "E.T". I think any singer would love the career that Katy Perry has right now. It seems that every song she puts out there becomes an instant hit and gains tons of radio air play. I always thought she was a better studio singer than live performer, but she sounded pretty decent tonight. Kanye West joining Katy for the song definitely added something to the mix.

Bottom 2/Who's Going Home:

SAFE= Jacob

Going HOME= Stefano

Final Thoughts:

*Stefano was in the Bottom 2 for several weeks in a row, he was Bottom 3 a good amount of times since Top 13 and survived all the way until now. He came a pretty far way from being the Wildcard and almost not even making it into being Top 7. He picked up a lot of fans through the weeks, but he obviously couldn't go that one more step to push past some of the bigger fanbases. He leaves with a positive attitude and I give him a lot of credit.

*Jacob is in some trouble. Unless he pulls out all of the stops next week, like Randy wants him to, he could be following in Stefano's footsteps. Haley has been in Bottom 3 more than anyone left in this competition so she is always at risk and also needs to keep putting it all out there and growing like she has the past several weeks.

*There are now 4 guys and 2 girls left in this competition. As said earlier 3 of the 6 have yet to be in Bottom 3 territory. We'll see if they can avoid that spot now that the numbers are really dwindling.

Please come on back here next week for more recaps, more commentary, and all the craziness that surrounds this show. Thanks to those that come back each and every week, we really appreciate it. See you all really soon.

Wednesday, April 20, 2011

Welcome Back! This week the Top 7 will be performing songs from The 21st Century. I don't remember anyone singing a song from this century at all last year, so this is a change for American Idol. Sometimes it is hard to sing a more current song because people still remember the artist and how it sounded, so it's on the Top 7 contestants to really change it up and make the songs their own. We'll see how it goes. We have 5 guys and 2 girls left, almost anyone is at risk.

Interestingly, before the Top 7 perform, Naima, Thia, Pia, Ashthon, Paul and Karen perform "So What?". Weren't they all just eliminated? It might be a little early to start reminiscing. The girls sounded decent enough, but when you throw Paul's voice into that mix it made the whole thing a mess, plus Naima was jumping around and doing karate kicks all around the stage. We also get a little shot of Mark Ballas(pro dancer on Dancing with the Stars), Pia's supposed new boyfriend. Next week Pia will be singing on an episode of Dancing with the Stars, so we get a little cross promotion thing happening as well. A little odd to bring back these contestants before the finale, but American Idol is a little strange sometimes, any long time viewer of this show knows that.

So after that odd little interlude we are finally ready to get to the remaining contestants. So let's get to it:

How Were The Contestants?

During the clip packages the Top 7 is asked about what they think of their fellow contestants.

Scotty (Swingin):The contestants make fun of the way Scotty holds the microphone, and sings out of the side of his mouth. Scotty had the choice to sing any song from the 21st century, and he picks a relativley obscure LeAnn Rimes song. A little bit of an odd choice. His crazy facial expressions are in full force tonight. I give Scotty credit for singing an uptempo song, but it really wasn't that unbelievable, the song choice is a little questionable, in my opinion. Grade=C+Steven: Loves him, loves his voice, loves LeAnn Rimes, thought it was real good.Jennifer: Loves his story telling ability, but wants him to pull out the big guns and push past his comfort zone. Says he had a decade of music to choose from and this didn't live up to expectations.Randy:Thinks that at this point Scotty was too safe and didn't like the song choice at all. Do The Judges Agree With Me?: It's nuts, but yes they do. Forget Steven, both Jennifer and Randy thought it was a safe choice and didn't do anything for Scotty. I never thought that the judges would say a bad word about Scotty. I kind of feel that if Steven didn't comment first, that he wouldn't have liked it, but because he was put on the spot first, before hearing the other judges he didn't know what to say. Scotty has a lot of fans, but getting bad reviews and being in the first spot tonight is a little dangerous, he should be safe, but depending on the other contestants, he could land in Bottom 3. I won't believe it until I see it, but ya never know.

James(Uprising):The contestants makes fun of the way he points, his scarf tail and the way he hits those high notes. I love this song so much from The Muse, and it's a great choice for James, Jimmy Iovine also thinks it's a great substantial song for him. James gets to come into the arena with a marching band, cool entrance. The beginning of the song was very generic and karaoke, but then James added his high pitched flair which made it his own. I really liked this performance, it was very cool, and he sounded pretty controlled out there. Grade=B+Jennifer: Thinks theatrically that it will be the best performance of the night. Thought it was really amazing, thinks it was the highest he ever sang.Randy: Loves the direction James went with this song and wants him to follow this path. Goes out on a limb and thinks this will be the best performance of the night.Steven: Thinks it was crazy good, loves that he is beautifully out of his mind. Also asks James to stay out of his closet. Do The Judges Agree With Me?: Pretty much. I might not have said this will be the best performance of the night since we have only seen 2 people thus far, but James was really good.

Haley(Rolling in The Deep):The contestants make fun of her growls, they think she is a brat, sassy, and has a love hate relationship with Stefano. Haley has chosen one of Adele's new songs. It's a great song, and Haley makes a great choice with this one. Haley starts out sitting on piano, and when the song picks up she starts getting her growls into the song and makes it her own. Although you could still hear Adele in there, there was a lot of Haley in it as well, which makes it a lot better. Probably not her best ever but definitely better than last week. Grade=BRandy: Loves the song choice, and wants Haley to go the vocal path of Adele, thought it was well done.Steven: Thought it was a great performance, has a great feeling to her voice.Jennifer: Gives her credit for choosing Adele and loved that she made a lot of the song her own. Do The Judges Agree With Me?: They do. Haley made the song her own, or as much as she could, and did a really solid job.

Jacob(Dance With My Father):The contestants call Jacob a diva, a cool diva, very diva-ish. Jacob has been compared to Luther Vandross a couple times this season, so singing this song, along with the meaning behind Jacob singing it(Jacob lost his father when he was only 12), makes this an appropriate song choice for Jacob. From the first line, Jacob almost loses it, he kind of stops briefly and then picks it back it up. This performance was full of emotion, and I give him credit for getting through it. I thought he was a little flat at points, and then a bit pitchy at points, but it an emotionally packed performance, so he did a decent job given all that. Grade=B-Steven: Calls him "Luther Lusk". Calls his performance a beautiful thing.Jennifer: Thinks that although he was able to control the emotion and perform really well, he maybe was a little off at a couple points. Randy: Thinks it was an emotional performance, but thinks it was just vocally okay, and that he wasn't jumping up and down. Thinks he is a race horse that has constraints put on, wants him to let loose next week, if he is still around.Do The Judges Agree With Me?: Pretty much. I am glad they are giving constructive criticism this week, and not just letting some of the negative aspects of his performance go without a mention.

Casey(Harder To Breathe):The contestants obviously make fun of Casey's beard and thinks he is a little weird and off about him. They call him a mad genius. Jimmy likes the song choice of singing this Maroon 5 song. The first part of the song, without the band was very cool and made the song so different from the original. Once the band came in, it made the song a little karaoke. He added a little of his own flair with his growl and then made it a little angry at a couple points. If we all remember that didn't work out for him a few weeks back when he performed "Smells Like Teen Spirit". At the end of the performance Casey walks up to the judges, sings the last notes very quietly and goes right up to J.Lo and kisses her on the cheek. Gotta give Casey credit for pulling a stunt like that. Grade=BJennifer: Thinks Casey has soft lips. Loved it....the performance. Thinks it was really great, and he brought all his Casey-isms to it.Randy: Loves that it's always a surprise out there. Enjoyed it and wants him to continue to take chances.Steven: Thinks he is a cult hero and then Steven Tyler cursed incredibly bad and was bleeped. I'm no lip reader but I believe the "F" word was used. The comment was positive, just a little bit too much for a show such as this. Steven just got a little excited right there.Do The Judges Agree With Me?: They do. It was a crazy cool performance. Simple as that.

Stefano (Closer):The contestants make fun of the way that Stefano tries to be a ladies man, and will flirt with a piece of paper if he has to. Singing Ne-Yo is an interesting choice for Stefano. Stefano has been in the Bottom 2, for 2 weeks in a row, he needs a big performance. But I don't think he does that at all. He loses some of the beat, and is flat in some points. He tries to dance, which was a little awkward. I do think that Stefano looks really good, so that's a positive. Otherwise it was pretty rough for me. Grade=CRandy: Thought he did a very good job. Liked that he took his time singing the verses and worked it all out.Steven: Thought it was a good job. Glad he danced a little. Jennifer: Thinks it was really really good, thinks that he had his swag going on. Thought he owned the song and thought it was a really good job. Do The Judges Agree With Me?: Nope. They really liked it, I really didn't. But they thought he was crazy good last week, and he was Bottom 2, so we'll have to see.

Lauren (Born To Fly):The contestants make fun of her accent, and the way that she talks and talks and talks. Jimmy tries to motivate Lauren to push through her nervousness and really step it up. He thinks if she can get past all that she is that magical of a singer to win the whole thing. Lauren decides to go straight country by singing this Sara Evans song. Unfortunetly the performance was lacking tonight. Her song was pretty solid, but unfortunately it was a little boring at some points. Kind of disappointing. Grade=B-Steven: Thinks that she has such natural talent and is special.Jennifer: Thinks her voice has a lot of character, wants her to try to hit those big notes that Lauren is afraid of.Randy: Wants Lauren to believe in herself as much as the judges do. Thinks the performance was good, but thinks she can bring greatness.Do The Judges Agree With Me?: Yep. Lauren had a tough night because she didn't push herself. She has what it takes, but tonight she just didn't take it there.

How Was The Show/Judges?:
*Either some producer gave the Judges a note, or the judges are reading and listening to the fans, because tonight the judges definitely provided some constructive criticism. It wasn't mean, or nasty, it was just good old fashioned help. Do I wish that they have been doing this all along? Sure. But if they do it this week and don't really do it again, then at least we got one decent week of judges feedback.

*The beginning of the show with the first 5 eliminated contestants performing was so strange. The American audience just got rid of these people, why would we want to see them again? Aside from Pia, they were all justly eliminated. I'll see you all at the finale for the little reunion, but don't come back til then, ya hear?

*Steven Tyler cursing was the funniest thing he has done in a long time, and that's not a good thing. Steven is such a non-entity on this show, so it's unfortunate that the coolest thing he did was curse. Jennifer and Randy stepped it up a little this week, Steven again did not.

*The song choices for 21st Century were decent. I think in the past 10 years there have been some incredible songs, so there were a couple bad song choices tonight. The two people that suffered from the worst song choices were Scotty and Lauren. When you get 10 years of songs to choose from your song choice should not be bad. I know sometimes the producers can't clear a certain song, but there are still plenty of other songs to choose from.

*For many many seasons at the Top 7 point Ryan does the fake out Bottom 3. He makes 2 groups of 3 and tells one person they are safe. Then he asks the one person to choose which group they think is Safe and which is the Bottom 3 group. I wonder if this scenario will happen this season, and if it does which 1 person will have to make the choice.

Bottom 3/Who's Going Home Predictions:

Bottom 3=Jacob, Stefano, HaleyGoing Home=Jacob. I think he needs to go. I feel he didn't bring it tonight, and he hasn't in a long time. Randy wants Jacob to push his vocals and go nuts next week, I want no part of that, so I would love for Jacob to be gone this week, and there is a good chance this will come to be.

Come on back here to IdolBeTheJudge tomorrow to see which contestant falls just shy of the Top 6. Should be interesting like always. See you soon!

Thursday, April 14, 2011

Welcome back. The always dramatic, always shocking, and (so far) always male dominated results show is back. There have been 5 eliminations thus far, all have been ladies, we will see tonight if that streak continues or is finally broken. After a pretty even night last night, almost anyone is at risk.

Our predictions for Bottom 3 is Haley, Stefano and Casey with Haley going home. I hope that my prediction is wrong and another girl is not sent home, but I really have no confidence in a woman not leaving. There were over 53 million votes cast last night, which is a reason why the producers will never limit the number of votes per person, they love hearing that so many people voted for them. We will know pretty shortly what those 53 million votes have decided, so let's get to it:

Lauren and Scotty Perform:

They have decided to forgo the group performance again and do these smaller contestant performances. They sing "American Honey" by Lady Antebellum. I'm not the biggest country fan in the world, but I appreciate the style and they sounded really nice. Plus Lauren gets bonus points for wearing the largest earrings ever.

Ford Music Video:

We don't just get to see the video this week, but we get to see the behind the scenes of the video. So we get double the waste of time. Sweet!

Haley and Casey Perform:

The two of them have a very bluesy and jazzy feel to their voices, so combining their voices to sing "Moanin" by Sarah Vaughan was a great idea. Never heard the song before or the artist, but they sang the song really well and I appreciate the two of them together. It was a really cool performance and they both sang well together.

Results #1:

Casey, Haley, Lauren and Scotty come to center stage.

Scotty is SAFE

Lauren is SAFE

Casey is SAFE

Haley is BOTTOM 3. (Here we go again)

Rob Reiner Visits:

He talks about acting, and we see the contestants try and pretend that they can act. They should probably stick to singing.

Performance # 1:

Kelly Clarkson and Jason Aldean sing "Don't You Wanna Stay". I always love seeing Kelly on this show. It kind of shows you how this show used to be so important and what it did for her life. The show did mean something and was important in pop culture. I know they want that again, and Kelly Clarkson proves that something great can happen from this show. It just has been awhile. Either way she and Jason Aldean sounded great together.

Stefano, Paul, Jacob and James Perform:

The four guys perform a medley of Simon & Garfunkel songs. I don't like the mesh of their voices together, but it makes sense that they put the four guys together. Definitely not as great as the Casey & Haley performance.

Results # 2:

Jacob, James, Stefano and Paul stay at center stage.

James is SAFE

Stefano is BOTTOM 3

Jacob is SAFE

Paul is BOTTOM 3

Performance # 2:

The next performance is by Rihanna. She is always a great performer, and sounds great. I guess her new single "S&M" was a little too risque for American Idol so she sang "California King Bed". But she looked kind of cool, she had a lot of hair going on, and her voice was great.

Bottom 3/ Who's Going Home

First SAFE=HALEY!!!! Finally a woman does not leave the show. Wow. The streak ends at a record 5 women in a row going home. She has a lot of work to do to stick around, but this is a great start.

Second SAFE=Stefano. For the second week in a row Stefano escapes elimination by this much.

Going HOME=Paul

Final Thoughts:

*Obviously having a guy go home is the best news coming for the show tonight. Paul was a quirky guy, he went first last night, and wore a crazy outfit. He leaves with a smile and sings Maggie May on the way out. I think Paul is a really cool guy, but with his kind of voice it would be tough to compete with the really powerful voices left in this competition.

*Stefano, Haley, Casey and Jacob have to keep stepping it up. They are clearly the weakest 4 left in the competition. Scotty, James and Lauren have yet to be in the Bottom 3. So if they don't want to be sent home then they have to make smart choices, say the right things(I'm talking about you Jacob), and really be unbelieveable. We shall see what happens.

Come on back here next week for the Top 7. We now have 5 guys and 2 girls, so we will see if the girls can evade elimination again. See you then.

Wednesday, April 13, 2011

After (arguably) one of the most shocking eliminations in American Idol history, Pia Toscano is gone, and there are only 2 ladies left, Lauren and Haley. After reading and listening to executive producer Nigel Lythgoe this past week he mentioned that Pia was not the front runner that we all thought she was. She wasn't getting the votes that she deserved. He mentioned that the way the show is formatted may change next year, meaning how contestants are voted out, how many votes per phone line, etc, but this year we have what we have. We could go on and on about why Pia was prematurely eliminated, and who's to blame, and how big an impact the judges lack of criticism plays but unfortunately it's not going to bring back Pia. We can only hope that the judges get better and the American audience chooses the right person to go home from here on in.

There are 8 contestants left, some very good, some that need some help, tonight's theme is Songs From the Movies. This theme is one of my favorites, hopefully the 8 remaining contestants will step it up. So as we always do, let's get to it:

How Were The Contestants?:

Paul(Old Time Rock n Roll): This song is from "Risky Buisness". For the second week in a row Will.i.am is helping Jimmy Iovine with the contestants. I don't have a clue to what Paul is wearing, or why he thought it was attractive. He sounded very screechy despite having a lot of energy and powering through it. Not nearly as good as last week. Grade=BSteven: Liked it, and agrees with how the audience feels, good. Jennifer: Thinks he is going a bit further each time he is out there. Finds that he is a diamond in the rough.Randy: Loved the outfit, and thinks this was a song that could be part of his concert.Do The Judges Agree With Me?: Sort of. I didn't think it was terrible, but there was nothing particularly unbelievable about it. The judges were far more enthusiastic about the performance than I was.

Lauren (The Climb): This song is from "The Hannah Montana" movie. Jimmy Iovine thinks that Lauren is a much much better singer than Miley Cyrus and that she could bury her with this performance. Ouch. Given that Miley Cyrus was a "mentor" on American Idol, I don't see her coming back. He also thinks that she could snatch a lot of the Pia fans with this performance. With only 2 girls Jimmy really wants to make sure that Lauren sticks around for awhile. The beginning of the song was just okay, but once she hit the middle to end of the song she really started to pick it up. Her vocals were fantastic all the way through and I agree that she probably a better singer than Miley Cyrus even at this very young stage. Grade=B+Jennifer: Thinks she sounds beautiful and wants her to push even furtherRandy: Believed in her since Day 1, and made the song sound like it was written for her.Steven: Loves what she brings to a song, and what the song brings to you. Finds it beautiful and moves him beyond tears.Do The Judges Agree With Me?: They do. Lauren can still bring even more, but she did a really beautiful rendition of this song.

Stefano(End Of The Road): From the movie "Boomerang". After being this close to getting voted out, Stefano needs to pick it up. He has had some rough weeks recently. I enjoy this song, I think it was a right choice for him, but I thought he was a little flat and pitchy at some points. He's always okay, but he's never really outstanding or has a moment. He probably had a better week than last, but not sure if it will be enough to get him out of the Bottom 3, or going home. Grade=B-Randy: Thinks he slayed the song. Is happy that he now believes in himself and thinks it was his best vocal to date.Steven: Thinks he can really milk a song. Doesn't think this is the end of the road for him, just the beginning.Jennifer: Feels that he now knows the key to being a great performer and has it in him to win. Do The Judges Agree With Me?: Sort of. Again they think he was much better than I did, but they loved him last week and he landed in Bottom 2, so ya never do know.

Scotty(I Cross My Heart): This is from the movie "Pure Country". Never heard of the song, or the movie, but Scotty knows it so that's all it takes. He changed his mind from singing another song, so it'll be interesting if it was a good change or costly. Have I mentioned how I hate when Scotty uses his second hand to hold the microphone and continuously makes his eyebrows go up and down? It's so odd. But his voice is just as solid as it always is. The performance was pretty boring, but whoever votes for him will probably vote for him again. The high note was very pitchy but the judges have yet to say a bad comment about him, so it's tough for him to know when he doesn't do a great job. Grade=BSteven: Loves his voice, and thinks all of America is falling in love with him.Jennifer: Wants to be critical but just can't, thinks that it might not have been her favorite song choice.Randy: Loves the song choice, and thinks a star is born and just continues to grow.Do The Judges Agree With Me?: Sort of. Again, the judges are just over the moon about this kid. They have zero negatives about him, and don't even want to say anything bad about him.

Casey(Nature Boy): After almost going with "In The Air Tonight" by Phil Collins, Casey goes against the advice of his mentors, and sings this Nat King Cole song from the movie "Moulin Rouge". The song made Casey sound very jazzy and cool, but he wasn't particularly in tune or on key through a large part of the song and lost some of his musicality. He was also pretty pitchy and all over the place. Good try, but not really good. With the judges giving him a standing ovation I feel we might differ today. Grade=CJennifer: Loved that he is so different and feels he crosses the boundaries.Randy: Thinks he is a real true artist and hopes America gets Casey's whole thing.Thinks it was brilliant and genius.Steven: Took a song that was old and made it into something great. He has a certain sophistication about him. Do The Judges Agree With Me?: Um, no. I thought he was so all over the place, I give him credit for going against the mentors and being different, but I didn't think he sounded all that great.

Haley(Call Me): This song is from the movie "American Gigolo". I think this was a great song choice by Haley. She goes out there and seems to have a great time while she's performing. She has a really fun and cool performance. It probably isn't her best, but it's still really really good. Grade=BRandy: He didn't love the beginning, or the song choice in general. Didn't think it showcased her voice.Steven: Agrees with Randy, but nailed the chorus beautifully.Jennifer: Is afraid to say anything bad about a girl, but probably doesn't think it was her best, but still thinks she is a contender.Do The Judges Agree With Me?: Pretty much. Definitely not her best, but she is still a strong singer.

Jacob(Bridge Over Troubled Water): This song comes from the movie "The Pursuit of Happyness". Jimmy Iovine kind of scolds Jacob for preaching to people about what he said last week, that it would be America's fault if he landed in Bottom 3. He tells him that you don't preach to people when you haven't even put out a record yet. Plus, I don't know if Jacob knew this, but he didn't actually write the song or create the song. I am glad that Jimmy said something to him about that major faux pas. After being told to sing this song by Jimmy, Jacob listens. I'm mixed about Jacob. I thought he actually did a pretty nice job, and his vocals were on par, but I don't know if will ever make non fans into fans. He is pretty much the same week in and week out. He has those really high moments, a couple odd facial expressions, and that's his shtick. It was nice, I'll put it that way. Grade=BSteven: Loves all that he puts into the song. Thought he was incredible.Jennifer: Thinks he is a gifted vocalist and gave her the chills again.Randy: Thinks that Jacob believes every word he sings, and makes everything so special. Thinks it was perfect perfect harmony.Do The Judges Agree With Me?: A little. The judges have yet to say a negative word about Jacob even when he said that odd thing last week, so they thought he was perfect and loved it, I'm pretty indifferent about Jacob this time around. I don't know if he did enough to escape Bottom 3 again.

James(Heavy Metal): This song comes from the movie "Heavy Metal". James, Jimmy and Will.i.am go at it a little bit this week. James disagrees with them about his song choice and his decisions. Is James a good performer? Sure, but this week was nuts. If you like all the guitar riffs and jumping up on the judges table,and a good amount of screaming then you'll love this week, but if you are looking for a good vocal and some control then this is not the performance for you. This really wasn't the performance for me. Grade=B-Jennifer: Loves how different James is and it's America's choice.Randy: Thinks we were just at a James Durbin concert. Thought it was unbelievable. Thinks Durbin Rocks!Steven: Thought he was outstanding and went with his decision. Do The Judges Agree With Me?: Nope. I thought it was waaaaay too over the top. If America loves it as much as the studio audience and judges did then James will be safe. If they thought it was crazy like I did, then he could be in a little danger.

How Was The Show/Judges?:

*Jennifer Lopez said it tonight, she knows that the public wants the judges to be tough, but she/they can't do it because they are all so good. These judges have been in the music business all of these years, and performed for millions of people, and have had albums upon albums, but they can't come up with 1 constructive criticism to give to some of these contestants? Not even one? Please. These contestants are very fresh, very young up and comers. They need the help to move forward and they just aren't getting it.

*Jennifer also stating that she doesn't want to say anything bad about Haley because she is afraid of another girl going home is exactly what the problem is. We don't know who votes, or doesn't vote for these girls, but for J.Lo to be scared to actually give some criticism to a girl is an issue. A big one. Plus, if she doesn't want a girl to go home, then you can't tell all the guys that they were perfect. You aren't giving the audience much of a choice.

*There's also a bit of problem with only being 2 ladies left, (which is a problem in itself), but the problem is that because there is a disproportionate amount of men to women, it's unlikely that a female will end the show, which happens to be best slot of the night. It's unlikely they will ever go with that many performances by men in a row before a female. Could it happen? Sure. But the odds of that happening are unlikely. The last slot of the night, also referred by many as "the pimp slot", leaves the last impression with the voting audience, so if a female doesn't get that slot because of there being so many men left, then that's just another unfortunate result of all these women leaving the show before the guys.

*No one expected Pia to go home, since she was never in Bottom 3 prior to her elimination, so really anyone is at risk tomorrow.

Bottom 3 Prediction/Who's Going Home?:

Bottom 3?=Haley, Stefano, and CaseyGoing Home?=Haley. Prove me wrong America, PLEASE. I only say Haley because she is a girl, and because she is the only one that got even a slight bit of criticism. When the judges say that the majority of the performances were perfect, unbelievable and the best, then you have to look at the one performance that they didn't go crazy for. Haley's performance might not have been great, but she's been consistent, Casey, Paul and Stefano have not. I hope one of them, or even Jacob goes, but I'm nervous Haley is going.

Come back here tomorrow night for the results, the feedback and to see if any more craziness occurs. You know there is always craziness so check back in here tomorrow to see what it was.

Thursday, April 7, 2011

Welcome back. After a pretty solid night of performances one person will be going home. I still don't agree with the judges that some of these contestants are pefect and don't really need any help. I barely remember the judges being criticial towards Jacob, Scotty or James, just to name a few. Last night we predicted the Bottom 3 as Jacob, Haley and Stefano, with Stefano going home. After Jacob's very odd statement that if he was Bottom 3 it wouldn't be because he sang bad or picked the wrong song but because America can't look at themeleves in the mirror, Jacob might actually land in the Bottom 3 and go home. It was a very strange comment. We'll see what happens. So as always, let's get to it:

Top 9 Group Performance:

After splitting the group up into duets and trios last week, the group performances are back. They sing a mix of rock songs, including "I Love Rock n Roll", "The Letter", and "Sweet Home Alabama". Because there are only 3 women left it puts a lot of focus onto them. They have to pick up some of the slack to balance it out with all those guys. Honestly those 3 girls sounded really nice together, the guys were a little pitchy and a little strange, plus can someone tell Scotty to go on Youtube to check out videos on how to hold a microphone. He holds it with both hands and grasps it in a such a weird way.

Ford Music Video:

No words are needed to describe this section.

Russell Brand Drops In:

I love Russell Brand, so I appreciate him coming by, I'd rather him than Hulk Hogan any day. He wants to help them loosen up on stage and bring more charisma. He calls Casey "a gorgeous hair ball of wonder". Russell gives advice to be limber, picture the judges naked and just be loose.

Results #1:

Casey, Stefano and Lauren come to center stage

Lauren is SAFE

Casey is SAFE

Stefano is BOTTOM 3

Performance # 1:

Constantine Maroulis is back on the Idol stage for the first time in a long time. He sings a more rock rendition of "Unchained Melody". This was a pretty cool version of the song, and I haven't hear Constantine sing a long time so it was a nice performance. I enjoy seeing past contestants come back, it's more enjoyable sometimes than random artists that have nothing to do with Idol or even the theme week.

Results #2:

Paul, Pia and Scotty come to center stage

Scotty is SAFE

Paul is SAFE

Pia is BOTTOM 3 (Very shocked)

Results #3:

James, Haley and Jacob come to center stage

James is SAFE

Haley is SAFE

Jacob is BOTTOM 3

Performance #2:

Iggy Pop is the next perfomer. Since he is an actual rock star and this is Rock n Roll week this actually makes sense. Opposed to last week when they had country band Sugarland perform during Motown Week. Very cool performance.

Bottom 3/Who's Going Home?

First Safe=Jacob(Ryan almost made him think he was going home)

Second Safe=Stefano

Going Home=Pia. WOW!!

Final Thoughts?:

*Unbelievable. Pia was in my opinion the front runner. This happened because they saved Casey two weeks ago. Pia leaving is the biggest shock in several years. This is wrong on so many levels. She was my favorite, I thought she had one of her best nights last night. This was so wrong. I can't even put into words how messed up it is that Stefano is still here, and Jacob is still here and Paul is still here and Pia is gone. Crazy, it really is. I never would have guessed she would have been in Bottom 3, let alone going home.

*The judges asked her to do something different than what she has done and do something other than ballads, and the first week she did that the audience didn't vote for her. The judges used the save on Casey with 11 people left. The judges gave little no criticism to anyone but Pia last night, when others were so much worse comparable. I blame the judges 100% for this one. Should the audience have been more passionate, sure, but when you tell everyone they are perfect, and only say something a bit negative about Pia, you aren't helping the audience at all.

*Five women have now gone home in a row, that's definetly something to think about.

*This show will feel a lot different to me now that Pia is gone. I am almost as upset as when Daughtry left several years ago. Very very shocking.

Come back here next week when really anything can happen. Every week gets more shocking and more shocking. See you soon.

Wednesday, April 6, 2011

Welcome back. It's Rock and Roll Hall of Fame week, so we should get a good mix of songs from a range of different artists. It seemed like it took awhile, but we are now at the Top 9. I hope the judges will start to be a bit more interesting and critical with their comments. The first four ladies voted out were never going to win, and there are still a few that have no shot, but for the contestants that do have a shot it's important they get the right help. The competition is very wide open, it's time to get serious and focused. We'll see if the contestants, judges and Ryan can handle that. Will.i.am is along with Jimmy Iovine tonight helping the contestants. So as we always do, let's get to it:

How Were The Contestants:

Jacob Lusk(Man in The Mirror): After changing his mind from "Let's Get it On" by Marvin Gaye, to "Man in The Mirror" by Michael Jackson, Jacob in his clip package says, and I quote, "if I make in the Bottom 3 it won't be because I sang the song bad, or the song wrong, it'll be because everyone in America weren't able to look at themselves in the mirror". And I say WHAT? Did he just say that, really? No Jacob it'll be because you sang bad. Very odd statement by him, almost as odd as when he said that alleged(maybe not so alleged statutory rapist) R. Kelly was his idol. Ok Jacob. Although he still had his weird facial gestures, and some odd dancing with Sarita(who actually wrote the song), he actually did have a nice performance. It was pretty controlled and one of his better outings in recent weeks. Grade=B+Steven: Thought it was beautiful and well done. Jennifer: Thought it was perfect in every way, and on every emotional level. Randy: Proud that he changed the song to what he believed in. Thought there were Jacob moments all over the place. Do The Judges Agree With Me?: Pretty much. Probably Jacob's better performances, despite that very odd statement he made in his clip package. Not saying he was perfect, but he did a nice job.

Haley(Piece of My Heart): Singing this Janis Joplin song makes complete and perfect sense. Haley has her growl and brings a lot of energy to her performance. You can really hear the grit in her voice and a lot of her passion. I liked that she changed a little part of the chorus and did something a little different at the end with it. That last note was pretty cool. Grade=B+Jennifer: Thinks she is a contender and is coming on strong.Randy: Loved that she has all the bluesey, cool runs and welcomes her back, even though he also welcomed her back last week. Steven: Finds nothing wrong with it. Loves that she took the song up a few notches. Thought she nailed it.Do The Judges Agree With Me?: We do. Haley is coming on strong. Those first couple weeks are definitely far in the past. Haley will be around for awhile if she keeps this up.

Casey(Have You Ever Really Seen The Rain): Casey, like Jacob before, decided to change his original song which was "Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic", to this Creedence Clearwater Revival song. I think it was a smart change because back in Season 6 Chis Sligh sang "Every Little Thing..." and he got kicked off, so it's good to get away from that bad luck. Back with his upright bass Casey brings a much simpler tone and vocal to the song. It might not have been the most fun performance, but he sang it really nice, and he adds his flair to it without making it too gimmicky like he did when he was almost voted out. A very cool way he pulled this song off. Grade=BRandy: Thinks he made CCR proud. Thinks he is making the upright bass cool, and is revolutionary. Steven: Loves that he keeps changing it up, and is a complete package.Jennifer: Thinks he is right where he belongs and she would pay to be in the front row to see him. Do The Judges Agree With Me?: Sort of. I think Casey was a bit better last week, but seeing him with the upright bass was pretty cool, even if it wasn't his best performance.

Lauren(Natural Woman): Early on people thought that Lauren was a mix of Carrie Underwood and Kelly Clarkson. Well this song put Kelly Clarkson on the map in Season 1 so we'll see if Lauren can pull it off as well. Although it took a little bit to get the song going, once it did Lauren started to hit all the right notes. The song could have been pushed a little bit more, and be a little less constrained, but when the song picked up, Lauren started to bring more energy to the performance. Not as great as last week, but still pretty decent. Grade=BSteven: Thinks she is a natural born woman, and loves her voice and is great. Jennifer: Thinks Lauren is amazing and pulled off a big song.Randy: Thinks that Lauren picked a very difficult song, even though he wasn't jumping up and down, she did a really nice job with it. Do The Judges Agree With Me: Kind of. We definitely all think that she did a nice job, but I would have liked them to tell her that she could have done a bit more with it. Lauren is more than what she showed tonight.

James (While My Guitar Gently Weeps): After going nuts on the stage last week, James decides to do a much more subdued performance. I love that he took a chance and decided to sing this very cool, classic Beatles song. I barely could hear his vocals last week with all his running around, this week I could hear every note, and he sounded pretty nice. It wasn't unbelievable, he probably isn't the best vocalist in the competition, so this song showed some of his flaws. But that last note proved why he is still here. All around I give him credit for doing the opposite of what he did last week. Grade=BJennifer: Loved to see the other side of James. Loves his vulnerability, and thought he made a nice choice with the song. Randy: Loved the true emotional side and likes that he was so engaged and took a great chance that worked out. Steven: Thinks that his performance was great and that he had a proud moment with his vulnerable side. Do The Judges Agree With Me: Yep. I liked seeing the other side of James, it's much better than when he is running around and I can barely hear his vocals.

Scotty(That's Alright Mama): I'm glad that Scotty isn't doing the same old slow country song. I like seeing him sing an uptempo kind of song. I still don't get why Scotty holds the microphone the way he does, plus the way that he walks and interacts with the audience is a little strange and his facial expressions are always awkward looking. But his vocals were solid and I liked that he changed it up. After his performance a gaggle of girls jumped on stage, it might have been planned but maybe not. Grade=BRandy: Thinks Scotty is in it to win it. Thinks it was amazing and loves the new Scotty. Steven: Glad that he changed it up and isn't a one trick pony.Jennifer: Thinks that Scotty is fun. She wonders if he watches rap because some of his gestures are a little gangsta. Do The Judges Agree With Me?: They do. We all are glad he switched it up a little. I would have liked them giving him some notes on some of his awkward facial expressions, but his vocals were pretty solid tonight.

Pia(River Deep Mountain High): Not gonna lie, I love this song by Tina Turner. Seeing Pia do an uptempo is a great switch. She can still hit those really high notes, but it's more fun and cool. She was really into her performance and the song. This was a perfect song choice, it showed off all the good parts of Pia. She even worked the audience a little but still was herself. This was an all around great performance, great vocals and different then anything we have seen from her in a long time. Grade=ASteven: Thinks she killed it and is what a lot of guys in bars will be thinking about tonight. Jennifer: Thinks that it was amazing. Thinks she is so special, and wants her to step up some of her performances, because she wants her to keep getting greater. Randy: Showed that she can deliever on an uptempo just as much as a ballad. Also thinks she is in it to win it. Do The Judges Agree With Me?: Yes. I loved that J.Lo said what she did. It was perfect constructive criticism while praising her as well. Pia is about 85% of the way there, she just needs a little work on her performance skills and she can really win this whole thing. But if I only listened to this on the radio, or on my Ipod I'd probably think that Pia is 100%, because her vocals are crazy good.

Stefano(When A Man Loves A Woman): This guy needs a break out week. He hasn't had a really good performance in a long time. This was a pretty good performance. Not as strong as he probably thought it was. Definitely better than last week, but was a bit too much and all over the place for my taste. There were a few pitchy problems and flat notes in there as well. Grade=C+Jennifer: Knew that Stefano had it in him and thought it was beautiful. Thinks it had another level of emotion to it, thought it was magic. Randy: Liked it, but isn't jumping up and down. Thought it was a little jerky at points. Steven: Liked the old timeyness of the beginning of his voice. Thought he nailed it. Do The Judges Agree With Me?: Not really. Randy sort of agrees that Stefano wasn't as great as Jennifer and Steven thought. I don't think it matches up to some of the better performances earlier in the evening.

Paul(Folsom Prison): After being the only one left of the Bottom 3 last week Paul has a lot to prove. Singing a Johnny Cash song was a great idea. He needed to do an uptempo song to be different than last week. He plays with the audience, and actually seems like he was having fun this time out. Grade=B+Randy: Has three words for him, "I Loved It". Steven: Thinks he rocked the house and is perfectly imperfect.Jennifer: Thinks that he is right in his lane and thinks he created a perfect way to end the evening. Do The Judges Agree With Me?: Yep. Paul had a really nice performance. Doing the opposite of what he has been doing the past several weeks was a very smart idea, and he might have saved himself this week.

How Was The Show/Judges?: *Loved Will.i.am. He really helped the contestants with their performances and style. Plus he was pretty entertaining. I can see why the majority of the singing industry wants to or has worked with him. My favorite line of Will.i.am was when Paul wanted a drink of water, he told him to not stop singing and just "drink his spit". Very funny.

*This was probably the strongest night of performances thus far by all the contestants as a whole. There weren't any really atrocious performances. So I can't get on the judges tonight for not being overly critical. But there are still some very young contestants that would benefit from some constructive criticism. The note that J.Lo said to Pia about working on her performance skills was a good example of this. I think there are still a few other contestants that could stand some input from these judges. J.Lo and Steven Tyler especially have performed for years, the contestants could stand a few tips from people of their caliber.

Bottom 3 Prediction/Who's Going Home?

Bottom 3: Stefano, Jacob, Haley Going Home: Stefano. I don't think Stefano's fan base is as large as some of the others. That's also the reason I chose Haley and Jacob, not because they weren't really good but I don't know if there fan base is as large or strong as some of the others, plus they performed pretty early on in the night. This was a great night all around so it'll be hard to decide who will go home, so it comes down to fan bases. We'll see which fan bases are strong enough and which one will fail their favorite.

Come back here tomorrow night after the results show for all the recaps and craziness that I am sure will ensue. See you then.